~Pearl Girls~

Pearl Girls

encountering grit, experiencing grace

Compiled by Margaret McSweeney with stories from many ladies, including Debbie Macomber, Shaunti Feldhahn, Melody Carlson and Robin Jones Gunn.

With so many fabulous authors (many of which are my favorites!) sharing stories from their own lives this is surely one book you need to go out and get. I love, love, LOVE this one! Most stories are just a page or two long but each one has a Scripture verse to go along with it and will inspire you in your walk with the Lord.

About the book:

With His love and grace, God covered the unexpected pain in my life of becoming an adult orphan and transformed this pain into a pearl. We are all Pearl Girls. Each of us has been touched by God's gift of love and grace, and it's a gift that I want to share with others. That's why I am launching Pearl Girls.

Actually, my very first gift from my parents was a pearl. The gift of my name. Margaret means "precious pearl." So perhaps this is what I was always supposed to do. My heart's prayer is that Pearl Girls will be a blessing to others - to the women who contribute their literary talent to the Pearl Girls projects; to the readers who are inspired and comforted by the life experiences shared through these projects and to the women and children who will benefit from the proceeds given by Pearl Girls to various charities. This is a win-win for everyone, and each of us has a special part in making the Pearl Girls projects "blessed sellers."

After the first Pearl Girls tea in Atlanta, I went to my brother, Claude's home to help sort through our parents' boxes in his basement. It was an emotional experience and tedious process to discover what was in each box, to decide what to do with each item and to discard those belongings which we needed to let go. After several long hours of sorting, I received an incredible hug from heaven - a confirmation that Pearl Girls is something that is meant to be. I discovered a three strand necklace of painted pearls belonging to my grandmother from the early 1900s! Isn't that amazing?

The best thing about this book?

100% of the proceeds go to charity!

WINGS (women in need growing stronger). The proceeds will help fund a Safe House in the Chicago suburbs. It costs $50 a night to provide safe shelter for a woman and her children. During this economy, WINGS is receiving even more phone calls for a safe place to stay. Already, the Pearl Girls have provided 60 nights with the advance royalties. www.wingsprogram.com

Hands of Hope. The proceeds will help build wells in Uganda for school children. Can you imagine a child at school without a water fountain in the hallway where he or she can grab a quick sip of water in between classes on a hot day? These children have to drink from puddles and other water sources which carry diseases and parasites. It costs $12,000 to build a well in Uganda.Already, the Pearl Girls have provided funds to build ¼ of a well. www.handsofhopeonline.org

You can buy a copy of this for yourself here.

Sorry, not giving this one away, I'm keeping it for myself!

This book was given to me to review by LitFuse.